Journal-lubricator



L. w. s. GRAHAM AND F. s. LINDO. JOURNAL LUBRICATOR. APPLICATION FILED OCT. 21. I920.

71 1 1 Patented Mar. 8, 1921.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LAURENCE WILLIAM SYDNEY GRAHAM AND FRANCIS SYDNEY LINDO, OF TEMPE,

NEAR SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA. I

JOURNAL-LUBRICATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 8, 1921.

Application filed October 21, 1920. Serial No. 418,537.

To (4U to 710m. it may concern Be it known that we, LAURENCE VIL- LIAM SYDNEY GBAHAM and FRANCIS SYDNEY LINDO, subjects of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, both residing at Fanning street, Tempe, near Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Journal-Lubricators, of which the following is a specifica= tion.

This invention relates to journal lubricators of the type in which an oil lifting device is carried on a yielding support located in an axle box or like journal bearing housing, and operates to bring oil from a well in said housing to the exposed under side of the journal.

Our lubricator consists of a rectangular flier frame fixed on a spindle on which also is fixed two disks or rollers adapted to contact with the underside of the journal. This spindle is mounted in a frame constructed of a semi-elliptic lath or leaf of spring steel with lateral attachments disposed to locate the spindle parallel with the journal axis and directly below it, and to support it with the disks or rollers bearing lightly upwardly in contact with the journal surface, so as thereby to procure rotation of the spindle, and consequently of the flier frame, which is fixed on it. Upon the longitudinal members of the flier frame flap fliers are hingedlv mounted, which are caused by the revolutlon of the frame to dip into the oil well in the axle box or other housing when passing under the spindle, and, when passing over the spindle, to strike the surface of the journal to apply oil thereto lifted from the oil well. The supporting lath spring may be deformed, without giving it a permanent set, to facilitate insertion of the lubricator into an axle box or like housing, or withdrawal of same for replacement without disturbing the journal or displacing the bearing equipment or the box or housing structure.

Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings is a sectional elevational view through a railroad axle box of known type showing our lubricator in use therein;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of our lubricator as it appears when withdrawn from the axle box.

10 is the axle box body, 11 the cover vent in the outer part of same, 12 the oil well in the lower part of same, 13 the bearing cap, 1 1 the bearing seating, and 15 the journal. The lubricator consists of a spindle 16 having its ends loosely journaled in the upturned lugs 17 and 18 on the ends of a semi-elliptical steel lath 19. Across this lath 19 spacing and positioning claws 20, 21 adapted to the section of the axle box are fixed, as by rivets 22. The members 20, 21 are preferably constructed of steel lath so as to have a little flexibility to facilitate easy positioning of the fitting in an axle box. It will be understood that for the members 20, 21 there may be substituted any other placing or positioning devices appropriate to the particular type and section of the box, so

long as said members perform the function of holding the lubricator erect, that is to say, with the spindle 16 above the yielding spring support 19, with the bow portion of said spring 19 resting on the bottom of the oil well 12.

Keyed or otherwise fixed to the spindle 16 are two disks, or, preferably, cup shaped rollers 23, 2&1 which are adapted to contact with the underside of the journal 15, so that the rotation of the journal is communicated through them to the spindle 16, causing said spindle 16 to rotate with the journal. The rollers 23, 2 1 are spaced apart a little less than the clearance between the fillets at the ends of the journals, and the journal ends of the spindle 16 are made with surplus length, so that said spindle may float in its bearings in the lugs 17 and 18 to enable it to accommodate itself to lateral movement of the axle relatively to the bearing pads 13. This endwise float of the journal must be provided for more particularly in railway axles, for well known reasons.

Upon the spindle 16 two cross arms 25,26 are secured, and the ends of these arms are connected by rods ,27, 28 which form flier pintles. Upon these flier pintles 27, 28 flier pieces 29, 30 are mounted by folded metal backs 31, 32 which are an easy fit on the flier pintles 27, 28. The fliers 29, 30 are pieces of close woven cotton fabric or other stout flexible material. They hang loosely by their back fittings 31, 32 on the flier pintles 27 28 tending to hang vertically downward when at rest, but when the spindle 16 is in rapid rotation to fly outward therefrom by centrifugal action during the revolving movement of the frame constituted of the cross arms 25, 26 and flier pintles 27, 28 about the axis of the spindle 16. To insert the lubrioator into the axle box, the support spring 19 is flexed to offer sufficient clearance to allow the lubricator to be pushed in through the vent 16 and passed under or around the end of the journal 15, so that it may take up the fixed position shown in Fig. 1; its removal for purposes of replacement or repair or cleaning may be as readily effected by inserting the hand so as to grasp the spring 19 and flexing it to obtain the necessary clearance for passing the structure outward.

In operation, oil being filled as usual into the oil well 12 and the vehicle being in rotation, rotary motion is transmitted from the rotating journal 15 throughthe rollers 23, 24 which are maintained in contact therewith yieldingly by the upward bearing of the spring 19, so that the spindle 16 is brought into rotation at a rate corresponding with the rate of rotation of the journal 15. The fliers 29, 30 are thus caused successively to dip intothe oil in the well 12 in their sweep of movement below the spindle 16 and to slap against the underside of the journal 15 as they pass over said spindle.

Twice in each rotation of the spindle 16, therefore, thejournal 15 has oil applied to it by the contact of the fliers 29, 30. A plenti ful supply of lubrication is thus assured to the bearing.

What we claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A journal lubricator comprising a resilient support, a shaft rotatably mounted. on said support, a plurality of wheels fixed to saidshaft and engageable with the journa-l for transmitting movement to said shaft, a plurality of cross-rods fixed to said shaft,

and lubricating fliers pivotally connected to the outer ends of said cross-arms and designed to dip in lubricant in the journal box when the wheels are rotated for causing the fliers to apply the lubricant to the journal.

2. A journal lubricator comprising a resilient support adapted to be arranged in the journal box below the journal, a shaft rotatably mounted in said support, a. plurality of wheels fixed to said shaft and engaging the journal to be driven thereby, a plurality of cross-heads fixed to said shaft, spindles connecting the outer ends of one cross-head to the outer ends of the other cross-head, and lubricating fliers pivotally mounted on said spindles and designed to receive lubricant from the journal-box and apply the same to the journal.

3. The combination with a journal and its box, of a resilient support mounted in the a bottom of. the box and including a bowshaped part having upwardly extending ends provided with apertures, a shaft mounted in said apertures for rotatable and axial movement, a plurality of friction wheels fixed to said shaft and engageable with the journal for driving the shaft, a plurality of cross-heads fixed in spaced relation on the shaft, spindles connecting the outer ends of one cross-head to the outer ends of the other cross-head, folded metal backs pivotally mounted on said spindles, and fibrous fliers fixed to said backs and designed to dip in lubricant in the box when the shaft is rotated for applying the lubricant to the ournal.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures.

LAURENCE WILLIAM SYDNEY GRAHAM. FEANCIS SYDNEY LINDO. 

